I was a lucky Sri Lankan Tamil

Amma & I - 1996

An open letter to Alex Hawke

Dear Minister Hawke,

I hope you're well.

I am the daughter of two Sri Lankan Tamil migrants who moved to Australia in 1983 under the compassionate migration policies of Bob Hawke.

I was born in Sydney in 1995, and I have always felt so immensely lucky and privileged to have been born in Australia. It is a country that has given me and my family so much - and that is what drives me to give back as much as I can.

My father lost his older brother during the bloody civil war that took the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians over 29 years. My uncle was on his way to visit his parents at a refugee camp. His car was stopped, and his body was never found. Days later, his parents found out through people that witnessed it, that after he was brutally attacked, his body was burnt alongside multiple others.

The documented war crimes that were committed during that war, both by the Tamil Tigers & the Sri Lankan Government, are harrowing. Child soldiers. The bombing of hospitals during no-fire zones. The use of suicide bombers. A media blackout. The banning of humanitarian aid workers. Mass burials. The burning of temples. Stolen land. ‘Disappearances’ that still happen today.

It makes me sick to think about the number of people who call Sri Lankan Tamil refugees economic refugees. I am not saying that people do not attempt to move their families across seas for a better life - my family did exactly that. But to think we are sitting here in 2021 - talking about whether we can let the Murugappan family live peacefully in Australia - including their 2 beautiful little girls who were born on Gangalu land - is incredibly unsettling. This is not the Australia I know and love.

I frequently reflect on how bizarre it is that every single one of our lives is predicated upon where and when we happen to be born.

It has now been two years since the Department of Home Affairs recommended granting visas that would allow Priya, Nades and their girls leave detention and live freely in the community in Biloela.

I understand the complex nature of policy and practice - but this case, with the politics and precedent argument stripped away, is about a family that has made Australia home, and a community that wants them back. They were and will be contributors to our great society.

Regardless of why or how their parents have been deemed unworthy of living in Australia, their two girls have already suffered so much trauma at the hands of our Government. They’ve celebrated birthdays behind the wire - while they should have been eating fairy bread with their friends at home in Biloela. It is something we should all be deeply ashamed about.

Chances are, my parents wouldn't have been deemed genuine refugees back in 1983. They were financially ok, and there was no proof my uncle was killed by the Government Army or individuals that were supported by the Government of the time - there was no evidence, and the Government to do this day denies any wrongdoing. This is despite the fact that there is substantial evidence that proves the attempted genocide of our people.

The fact they did not have ‘proof’ did not mean they didn't deserve a chance at life in Australia - and if they weren't given a chance, I wouldn't be here today.

The queue jumper argument that John Howard so sensitively created is a really easy way for us to walk away from our responsibilities, and to fail to recognise our shared humanity.

You have immense power in your position to make a real difference to the lives of this family - but also to review and reshape the narrative that Australian society should be telling in relation to refugees and asylum seekers.

Outside of our First Nations population, we are a country made up of people that have come here from other places. People that have contributed to new developments, found work, fallen in love, and lived their lives on these beautiful lands.

You have the power to give more people that wonderful opportunity. You have the power to right past wrongs with the flick of your pen.

This family has made Australia home. They are part of a community that love them and want them here. And we have punished them for political gain.

It’s time.

I urge you to let them go home to Biloela.

Sincerely,
A Lucky Sri Lankan Tamil